Bad Habits

Why haven't I posted to this blog for what, three months? Perhaps it was that I had nothing interesting to say. My lifestyle in Korea had taken a turn for the worse a short while ago. The accumulating stress I had been experiencing at work seemed to be increasing at an exponential rate, and my unhealthy coping mechanisms were only adding to the problem. Rather than being able to fill my readers' chests with warm, fuzzy feelings of my interesting observations, I made it a point not to write continuous rants about the fact that I was momentarily hating life in Korea, and seeking immediate escape (literally and figuratively). In some ways, I felt that you wouldn't want to hear about my repetitive weekends of indulging in alcohol, gaining weight, and losing sleep over comments and occurrences at my workplace.

Things I can update you on – I don't hate my job at the moment, my brother visited me two months ago, I lost my iPhone in a cab, I have improved as a teacher, and my current positive state is due to being on vacation.

After two months of preparing, poorly on my behalf, for an Open House event at my school, I contemplated fleeing South Korea. In North America, I imagine this event at a preschool or kindergarten class would not attract so much stress. Working alongside my Korean co-teacher, I was responsible for designing/developing two lesson topics, and the accompanying worksheets and activities, while she was responsible for creating costumes and visual aids/props for the students. It sounded simple enough, but it was a huge disaster. I can say that my students are amazing individuals, who managed to absorb the gargantuan amount of information, which I shoved in their faces on a daily basis. I can't believe that my three and four year olds are capable of knowing what the Three R's are, how to recycle various household items, and what bins we need to recycle those items in based on the material from which they are made. I also can't believe I was responsible for teaching them how to read. Isn't that a mother/father kind of responsibility?

Maybe I should back up a little and make this Open House business more clear. All foreign and Korean teachers were responsible for putting on a show. Although it was claimed to simply be an example of how the classes function on a daily basis, and a display of each child's progress, it was much more of a theater performance. The layout of this event was structured as such: Homeroom teacher welcomes parents and gives a brief introduction of what the day holds. Students enter the room, in formation, to sing two songs (with gestures) and then leave to change out of their costumes. Homeroom teacher gives a description of the first lesson, in my case the topic was the story of The Lion and the Mouse, with emphasis on reading fluency, knowledge of characters and setting, and how to apply the moral of the story in Coral class (my class). After thirty minutes of that, and one dress shirt covered in sweat (yes, a mother complained that my tiny classroom full of 13 parents, 12 students, the vice principle, other assistants, my co-teacher, and myself was a bit too cold, so she demanded that the AC be shut off at once), the students left the room for a 5 minute intermission. Another description of the lesson and introduction of the students was presented by yours truly, and the students then entered the room again for the final lesson. This time, the topic was Recycling. Another 20-30 painstaking minutes passed, and the students then left for another costume change. Upon their return, they sang two more songs (gestures included), and presented their mothers with gifts.

Aside from my obvious nervousness, the whole event went incredibly smooth. My students are brilliant, little sponges. They were wonderful, despite complaints from their mothers of "being somewhat disappointed in (insert speaking mother's child's name)." The process of getting to this particular day, however, is what left me feeling uncertain as to whether staying in Korea any longer was a healthy option. Unfortunately, my co-teacher held back a lot of harsh feelings she had toward my teaching and discipline practices. Keep in mind, I have respect for this woman. She has 6 years of experience teaching little ones, she had been kind and helpful (90% of the time, anyway), and she works her ass off despite being unhappy with her position at this school. What I don't have respect for, however, is when people have an inability to express when they disagree with something. And, resort to speaking poorly of the person, whom they are upset with, to co-workers and repeatedly saying "nothing is wrong," when prompted with "I can see that you are upset. Did I do something to offend you? Is there something I can help you with?"

As far as the eye can see, I'm a procrastinator. I have been this way my entire life, and it has never changed despite several attempts. This negative quality of my personality never finds resolution due to the fact that, somehow, I am capable of pulling through at the very last second. There are very few consequences that arise. This reinforcement has made it impossible to change my ways. Normally, the enormous amount of stress that this behavior creates only affects me. In this particular situation, however, my behavior severely effected my co-teacher, or so she feels. My lesson planning for the Open House was poorly structured, I will admit. I also did not practice using the props created by my co-teacher enough, making the week prior to our event full of disputes over each other's responsibilities. To sum things up, my co-teacher felt as though I did not care about our class or this unreasonable event. Truth be told, I didn't at the time of preparation. After months of feeling bogged down by discouragement and tension, I felt defiant and unable to wrap my head around why I returned to Seoul. It was difficult for me to juggle my regular duties as a teacher, along with the extra hours spent researching my lesson topics, developing powerpoint and adobe presentations, working one on one with students to push them to read (at a much earlier age than kids in the US), and developing worksheets that would allow the students to retain these topics. Along with all of this, I was incredibly frustrated at the sight of my co-teacher frequently talking shit about me while pointing into my classroom during lessons.

After several arguments, my co-teacher and I managed to resolve our differences. She feels that I'm not a strong teacher, and I'm too hard on the children. She is somewhat accurate. I have never taught children this young, and I know that I never will again. Based on my level of patience, this is not a healthy field for me, nor is it appropriate due to my inability to have the energy to entertain children of this age group for 6 hours straight. It isn't a good fit, and I know that now. This isn't to say that I am entirely bad. In fact, I am quite good with my students now that I found better ways to get their attention. And, I do find satisfaction knowing that I am responsible for teaching them to read. There is plenty I can take away from this experience, and plenty more that I will learn during the second semester. I have begged all of my friends to remind me never to return to this, however. Thankfully, I didn't run away from my contractual agreement. Now, I can relax until the next ridiculous event.

I could not bare the thought of wasting away in Seoul during my 10 day vacation. Due to being incapable of making a solid decision for my vacation time, I meditated on the thought of Portland vs Bali. Eventually, Portland won at the last second (go figure). I spent over $2000 to come home, and can honestly say that it has been worth every penny so far. My happiness level shot through the roof the second I boarded the plane at Incheon International Airport. Aside from being unable to sleep more than one hour on the flight to Vancouver, BC, it was the best flight I have been on thus far. I was fortunate to witness not only a very clear, beautiful sunset, but a gorgeous sunrise as well.

Now that I have already adjusted my sleep schedule (I'm kind of a pro at this shit now), I can enjoy the short time I have with my massive family and wonderful group of friends. I have also made time for the things I love to do most, all of which somehow become easily forgotten while I am in Seoul. Due to friends commenting on the fact that I have gained weight (thanks, Jamie), I decided I needed to get back to forming a solid habit out of running. The thing I love about Portland is that it makes running so easy and fun. I have already logged 7 miles in the last two days, and hope to triple that number by the end of the week. Shortly before leaving Seoul, I also made a wise purchase that I owe credit to for getting me out of my funk. Due to my love for self-help books, I finally bought The Happiness Project, a book I had considered reading for the past year. Time has a funny way of making things come together. I believe I appreciate this book much more at this point in my life than I would have one year ago. Although I cannot promise that I will adhere to my plan of living a healthier, happier lifestyle based on everything I have gleaned from this book, or even so much that I will finish the book, it seems to have put me in a much more optimistic mood momentarily. That's enough to please me right now.

Basically, after reading my first blog entry and considering the way I have chosen to live my life in Seoul, I can firmly say that I haven't kept my goals for this year in mind. I am using Portland as my reset button in order to get my shit together and refocus. What that means, I have yet to fully determine. But on the upside, the wheels are moving. Now, I must get back to enjoying the best city on earth.

Looking Back

Let's see if I can rewind a little to get back to my previous post about spring being here. Two weekends ago, I went out to a bar called Bunker for a co-worker's birthday party. I had been to this place once before with Dee, Bryan, Michael, Patrick, and Jamie, so I wasn't surprised by the buckets, yes buckets, of alcohol, various boardgames, and poorly skilled pool amateurs. Prior to finding my way to this bar, I went the wrong direction. Once again, a young Korean guy, who spoke flawless English, helped me. Although it was out of his way, he walked me almost the entire way there (25 minutes from where I had approached him). Talk about being a total gentleman. We had a nice conversation, and then parted with a few last minute directions for the remaining leg. I arrived fairly late into the party, and greeted my co-worker, Madison, with a "happy birthday!" Incredibly hammered Madison responded with a surprised look and a "No way! Haha!" Aside from some incredibly douchey actions made by unmentionable guys, it was a fun night. Later on, we headed to Monkey Beach – a massive club, where locals and foreigners cram themselves next to one another, nuts to butts style, spill their buckets of alcohol all over you, and grope you without ever making eye contact. A co-worker and myself escaped shortly after entering. He had mentioned he wasn't nearly drunk enough to be there, and I simply find it to be the worst establishment Seoul has to offer, so I was happy to leave. After we escaped unnoticed, we made our way to Woodstock. Thankfully, though pricey, Woodstock carries Rogue beer. Not my favorite Oregon microbrew, but considering my lips hadn't touched quality beer for almost two months, I was willing to spend $8 for a pint. After a night of good conversation, and a stealthy escape from the rapey bar we call Monkey Beach, I made my way home.

The following day, I met Jamie and Patrick at Technomart to sign a contract for an iPhone. As usual, I managed to leave on time, yet arrive 30 minutes late. We had tried a couple of kiosks on the "cell phone" floor of this massive electronic goods mall. After being lied to because I'm a foreigner, Jamie explained to a salesmen that I was willing to sign a contract. All of the sudden, poof! He magically had iPhones available again. Dick. So, after the lengthy process of signing paperwork, paying my fees, and getting the run around for being a whitey, I finally had an iPhone. Oh wait. "This won't work until Monday at 2pm." Monday turned into Thursday, which later turned into Friday. I'll get to all of that later on though.

That Sunday, some friends from my previous school were having a picnic at Yeouido Park. The day started out a bit smoggy, but plenty warm. There were hoards of people due to it also being the weekend for the annual Cherry Blossom Festival. Excited for my legs to finally see the light of day after a long, cold winter, I moronically wore short shorts without applying any sunscreen. My legs, arms, and face were quite "sun kissed," by the end of the day. When I say "sun kissed," I mean burnt to shit. Who knew that drinking tall boys of Hite Dry Finish, while sitting in direct sunlight would result in such a mess? In the end, it was worth it all, despite the lobster sheen which I had to embarrassingly rock at work. I met a great couple from Florida, Corey and Melissa (current SLP teachers). It was a great opportunity to pick their brains about Kyoto and other various travels they have taken. We also swapped fun travel food poisoning stories. Always an easy go-to while living in Asia.

Although many of the trees had yet to bloom, it was beautiful to see the blossom lined streets. As the day wore on, the smog completely lifted, and we were left with a beautiful view of the mountains and hills beyond the massive structures on the north side of The Han River. Bryan, Dee, and I were the only remaining goers from our group at this point. I wasn't eager to get on the subway as this was quite possibly the loveliest day of the year, so I walked with them to pick up their bikes. The sun was setting, and thanks to Bryan's encouragement, I snapped a few photos of locals playing in the fountain/water sculpture space.

Now, fast forward to the most recent weekend. I did nearly nothing, thankfully. On Friday night, I met up with Andrei at a self-serve beer bar, a concept I would like to take back to the United States. These kind of places are all over Seoul, and apparently right in my neck of the woods. Too bad I can't find any of them around me. Thanks, Chris. Anyway, this place was on the third floor of a multipurpose building. As we walked in, there were some wooden tables and chairs, and a wall, lined with glass front refrigerators. White, vinyl numbers adorned various sections of beer, increasing in price as you moved to the right. For old times' sake, we threw back a few Changs (Thai beer), while playing Scrabble and catching up. The bar reminded both of us of a restaurant we frequented in Hanoi, called Rockbilly. Yeah, there was no 'a' present between the 'Rock,' or the 'billy'. The woman who was running the place was also a talented, electric pianist. She played amazing covers of old school jams.

Shortly after we had arrived, I needed to make my way to the little girl's room, as pressure was becoming heavy on the old bladder. This wasn't just any girl's room though. It was a fancy, Korean, dual-gender squatter and urinal combo room. How exciting?! I've come to realize that wearing dresses and skirts are almost a must while living in Seoul. You never know when you're going to be greeted by a non sit-down toilet. At one point in time, I was only capable of peeing in a squatter while heavily intoxicated AND wearing high heels. Man, how times have changed. Thanks to the Beers Of The World bar that Andrei had invited me to, I can now say that I have the skills to appropriately tackle any urine relieving vessel that comes my way. It turned out to be a great night for many reasons – good company, potty training, Thai beer, and great music.

The next morning, Seoul was greeted with heavy raindrops pounding on the ground. I was dressed to brave it all, sans an umbrella. On my walk to the subway, despite having a positive attitude of "pfff, no one uses umbrellas in Portland, and it rains all the time... I'll be fine," I was drenched. I met with Michael and Brie to pick up a few things at Costco. Michael let me borrow a massive umbrella, as he had an extra one lying around. Luckily, there were half as many people shopping that day as the previous time we had gone. I'm not certain, but it may very well have had to do with the weather. In any case, it made navigating through the aisles of bulk everything much easier. We had Beef Bulgogi at a restaurant in the E-mart food court shortly after. While they continued to shop, I hopped in a cab and made the soggy journey home. Once again, I was greeted by a sweet cabby. It seems I have hit some cabby jackpot, in that every single taxi driver I have ended up with has been incredibly kind, eager to speak English, and despite being lost in translation, we often manage to understand each other through humor.

Tired, and somewhat homesick, from all of the rain, I decided to make a list of the things that I need(ed) to do. I had originally thought I would go out for drinks with Michael and Jamie that night, but I was feeling exhausted and fat. Yeah, Joel, I know "feeling fat," is not a feeling. For whatever reason, my belly looked like that of a starving Ethiopian child. I wasn't in the mood to drink booze, or dance. So, I made my list of to-do's, watched Aladdin for the first time since about third grade, gorged on Costco goodies, and went to bed at 11pm. Thanks to that list I made, I was able to stay motivated throughout the whole day, and I accomplished seventy-five percent of my list. Still to do, you ask? Exercise, finish my friend's Wedding Thank You cards, post to blog, book my flight/hotel for Kyoto, and add color to my newest illustration.

Not so much of a continuation...

What have I been up to as of late, you say? Well, nothing too exciting. I've been up to my ears in daily commentary that I'm not a very good preschool teacher, despite the fact that my students' language skills have developed steadily over the past two months, they all tell me that they don't want to go home at the end of the day because they will miss me, and they're still bringing in ridiculous amounts of money to the school. But, I'm a terrible teacher. Sure. After a long days work, I often come home with a sense of bitterness, and begin my evening routine. Check email, read design blogs, maybe go for a walk or run, cook dinner, clean up, and watch episodes of Breaking Bad. This would be hunky dory if I could actually sleep come 10:30/11pm. Instead, I attempt to sleep, but can't. I lay in bed thinking about how I'm going to actually stand up to my bosses someday, or worry about my family, or worry about how I am turning 27 this year and still don't feel like I have my shit together, or, or, or.

Spring Happiness / Forgot to click 'publish'

Some co-workers and myself went out on Thursday night to enjoy some beverages prior to our beginning of the month, school spirit day. Although this is typically a monthly thing, I missed out on the previous outing due to having that awful flu. It was great to finally talk to my co-workers, without having the topic be at all related to work. As I suspected, all of them are genuinely friendly and interesting. We began our night in Gangnam, at a bar called King's Tap, moseyed our way to The Bulldog Pub, and landed at my favorite LP request bar, Woodstock. Now, despite the fact that I was horribly tired and hungover at work the following day, Thursday night was too much fun to regret. I am getting a little too old for drink-till-dawn marathons, yet that particular evening/morning is going to receive appreciation for as long as my memory allows.

After attempting to rally through my workday, I was hugged by my bed at 8pm. I woke up the following day to meet Patrick and Michael for a trip to Costco, and was pleasantly surprised to see an old friend, Brie, pop around Michael's hallway to greet me with a nice embrace. We wandered through the crowded aisles, frequently getting grazed by the locals – annoying at first, but you become familiar with the lack of personal space that is all too common here. I stocked up on 129,000 won ($105 usd) worth of goodies. I parted ways with Patrick, Michael, and Brie because I had to head to my side of Gangnam. When I hopped in the taxi, which was operated by a sweet, elderly man, I came to realize that Spring was finally here. The driver had all of the windows down, and there was a nice mix of warmth from the sun and a cool breeze from the wind.

Once I had appropriately unloaded by Costco booty, I went for a 3 hour jaunt outside. It was unbelievably perfect outside – low 60s, sunshine, and shade from the massive buildings on one side of the block. I walked all the way to Coex Mall, the massive underground shopping center at Samseong Station. It took me 40 minutes each way, and led me through some busy areas that once only made sense under ground. I have come to realize that I didn't actually explore this city much on the street level during my previous contract. There is something to appreciate about everything that you see and smell while walking for fifteen minutes, which otherwise goes unnoticed when you take the subway. Instead, you are in a sardine can with hoards of people, subway maps, somewhat tattered seat fabric, handrails, and the overall interior of a subway car. On a nice day, it's worth it to take the extra time, and travel on the surface.

To be continued...

It has been a while

Apologies for my lack of commitment to this blog as of late. Three days after my previous post, I came down with the worst flu I've experienced in several years. Myself, and other expats, often refer to this as the "Ol' Korean Plague". That's probably the best description I can give such an ugly virus. I guess that's what happens when you're surrounded by young children who have yet to learn how to cover their mouths and noses when they cough and sneeze. It's possible that the overall stress of living and working here didn't boost my immune system either.

After two days of suffering from a nasty fever, chills, muscle aches, headaches, swollen tonsils and respiratory congestion, I went to a clinic. At this point, it simply looked as though I had a terrible flu, so the Korean doctor just gave me some Tylenol and mild decongestants. Due to the fact that my school is ridiculously disorganized, I have not been permitted to go to the immigration office yet to receive my Alien Registration Card, which also affects my health insurance. One doctors office visit and 3 day medication regimen cost me approximately 20,000 won ($16usd). One office visit turned into three subsequent ones, however. Though the body aches and fever finally passed, I had developed tonsillitis and a sinus infection. Awesome. I had to go back for antibiotics, and being that Korea hasn't quite picked up on the whole finishing a proper length of treatment beyond feeling better thing, I had to go back again. Thanks to my friend Chris, I was able to pay for all this shit. Eight days of Roximycin, lots of sleep, and Nyquil helped me survive until this last Monday.

Despite some poor decisions last weekend, I was blessed with an amazing Monday. Just when I thought I was ready to pack my bags and get out of here, my students were being little angels. Not only were they listening to me, and behaving, they spoke English the entire day. It was amazing. What I have to learn to accept, however, is that these day come as often as they go. The rest of my week has been complete shit. I'm becoming more and more jaded toward the management staff at my school, and although I didn't think it could be possible, I hate my apartment even more now. They have been incredibly unclear as to what they want from me, and were not honest about my responsibilities when I interviewed. And before I get started on my apartment, I will just simply end this bitch session.

Because I'm incredibly annoyed after work every day, I've been going on walks to let off some steam and wander through my neighborhood. By 8pm, I'm zonked. Ready for bed. Done. I manage to watch an episode of Pan Am in the hopes that it will put me to sleep. The show is awful, but I love the period fashion and style. I've attempted to read for a while after that. Somehow, every night at approximately 9:45pm, it feels as though it is 7am and I need to start my day. It can't be jet lag. It definitely isn't that I'm thrilled to work the next day. I don't know what the cause of this sudden alertness is, but in any case, it leaves me awake until roughly 1am every night. This could be adding to my general unhappiness at work.

On the more positive side of things, I have some fun activities coming up during April. Now that I'm a bit more settled in, I feel like I can explore the city a bit more and commit to some goals I have for myself. After getting paid next weekend, I'm going to start attending yoga classes. I haven't picked a studio just yet, but it will likely be at this nice community center-esque gym in my old neighborhood. The price differs significantly from the Bikram place that I wanted to try, but I need to keep my monthly budget in mind. I'm also planning to set aside some of my evenings to devote to illustration projects. The plan is to have a finished project once per week. I'm also really eager to get out with my camera. I have yet to take a single photo with my Nikon, and I've been here for an entire month. That's just depressing.

Stay posted. Photos to come. Enjoy your weekend.

Fun & Frustration

Last week was my first real week of teaching. I can't say that I love having 5 year old students, who are actually 4. I'll explain later. The thing is, I don't feel as though I'm actually teaching. Instead, this school feels like a glorified day care. My week started with hours of tears. Three of my students missed their moms, and they haven't developed that ability to fight the urge to bawl. I was crying on the inside due to my decision to take on being a preschool/kindergarten teacher, and open myself up to the possibility of living in a shitty apartment. That possibility was fulfilled, by the way.

As the week progressed, however, my students began to actually speak English, and listen to me. It's a little difficult to corral seven small children who don't fully understand the words that I speak, or in my case, yell, to them. Aside from losing my voice throughout the day, having to help pull their pants up after they "pooh-poohed... Ms.Elena, I pooh-poohed," and watching them try to grip a pencil while they try to trace the letters of the alphabet, things began to turn around. One girl that cried three days in a row, and refused to speak to me, was smiling and answering all my questions by Friday. I'm hoping that this will continue to improve, but I still don't know if it will be enough to keep me here.

After visiting with some old friends, I came to realize how much I would rather be in Portland right now. This isn't to say that I didn't have an amazing time with them. I did. We went out for dinner, drinks, and dancing, followed by a drunken stagger to the Itaewon Taco Bell at 2am. How could a sane human being not have a wonderful time with great company and activities like that? Table conversation while we had our dinner, however, made me realize how much I worry about my parents and what could potentially happen while I'm away. Despite the fact that we never actually have control over anything, I still feel like I should be at home, where I can help, if not prevent, in the event of something awful happening again.

When I stumbled out of bed at 9:30am on Saturday morning, still slightly tipsy from the night before, my feelings hadn't changed. I often wonder if I were living in a more appealing apartment if these thoughts would dissipate. It's doubtful, but I guess I will never know. And really, what's the point in dwelling on the impossible? I can't even get my school to follow through with the furnishings included in my contract, so why would they ever provide me with better housing? Anyway, enough with the bitching.

The rest of my weekend was spent cleaning my dirt sack apartment. I worked on it for a little over two hours and it's still not quite where I would like it to be. In order to clear my mind of the shear hatred I have toward this inanimate space, I went on another walking adventure to find a nearby catholic church. Bridget and I had been to this church during my last contract in Seoul, and it dawned on me that I am now within walking distance. It turns out that the third time really is the charm. When I woke up this morning, I got ready as fast as I could, and walked the 20 minute (city block) distance. It was unreasonably cold, so I was happy to pick up the pace.

The mass was really nice, and I met some interesting people. The guy ahead of me, a strange, small Korean man, suggested I join some of them for coffee and doughnuts as I was on my way out. I didn't want to be a dick, so I made an appearance, and had a tasty pastry (though one of the things I gave up for Lent was sweets - smart move, Elena). I talked to an old man, whom they call "the Professor." I laughed in response to the statement, only to find out that he actually was a professor for almost forty years. He was really sweet and talked to me about some of the places that he's visited in the States, both for sightseeing and for lectures/conferences. A couple of people chimed in when they heard I was from Portland, "Oh, that's such a lovely place." I younger guy, closer to my age, approached me and, in broken English, inquired where I was from. He tried to speak to me, but clearly couldn't understand many of my responses. He also gave me his name card and asked if I would call him sometime. When I tried to tell him that I don't have a phone yet, he responded with pure confusion. It makes sense.

Right as our conversation was ending, the odd, Korean man who had invited me entered the room. He led with "Ohhh, I want a doughnut so bad. But, I can't. I am sick. Very sick. Diarrhea! Cha, cha, cha!" Good thing he shook my hand earlier, and was eyeballing/breathing on all of the baked/deep fried goodies. Although I was a little disgusted, I couldn't hold back the laughter. I can never really fight humor, especially when it comes in the form of potty jokes. After briefly speaking to him about Oregon, I met a couple other locals and foreigners. The priest asked me if I spoke Korean, and before I could answer he said, "ah, probably no need for you, never mind." I decided it was time to be on my way.

It isn't much, but as I promised, I have a photo to share. This is a city block (about 20 regular blocks) from where I am living. Not a great photo, as it is from my iPod. I will add more soon!

Kindness

I forgot to mention a few things that occurred since I've been back in Seoul. While grabbing a bite to eat at Coex Mall, I noticed a man in his late 30s repeatedly staring at me. I saw that he was sitting with someone else, but couldn't see who. I was becoming increasingly annoyed with the gazing, but reminded myself that maybe there was just a fascination due to me being the only white female in that particular restaurant. When I got up to leave, I nodded to him and smiled, only to see that he was sitting with a seven or eight year old. A few minutes later, I heard a faint voice saying "excuse-ah me... excuse-ah me."

When I turned around, I saw the same man and his son. The rest went a little something like this:

Man: "Could we borrow some of your time? Can we speak to you in English?"

Me: "Um, sure. Of course."

Man: "My son saw you eating, and he told me that he thinks you are very cute... or beautiful. He said you look very nice, and he thinks you speak English."

Me: "Oh, well thank you. That's very nice. Do you speak English?"

Boy: "Yeah, a little bit," bashfully covering his face

Man: "He just began. He is year one, but seven years old. He likes English very much. Are you traveling?"

Me: "No, I live here. I lived here before, and decided to come back."

Man and Boy: "Uhhh, really? Wow. What do you do?"

Me: "haha, I'm an English teacher."

Man: "Oh! haha, maybe someday you can teach him. Thank you so much for you time. Thank you."

Maybe I shouldn't always assume that Korean men are creepy if they gaze.

Today, while I was attempting to find an E-Mart (basically a Target store), I found myself quite lost. According to the directions I found online, I was to take the orange line to Yangjae, take exit 7, and walk 200 meters. I took exit 7, and was walking for about 15 minutes. I stopped a Canadian couple to ask if they knew where it was. They said it was a good 30-40 minute walk away from where we were standing, and suggested hailing a cab. I thought about it, and then decided to just keep walking. Right when I begin to panic because I knew I was very far from where I started, but there was still no E-Mart in sight, I saw two guys in their early 20s approaching me. They said, "hello," and kept walking. I figured they could help me so I turned around and asked them if I was actually lost or headed in the right direction. In nearly perfect English, they told me to hold on while they looked it up on their phones. While waiting for the directions to pop up, they began to tell me about how they just failed their English oral test. They were laughing, but clearly upset that they had done so poorly. I was also a little surprised based on the fact that they spoke better English than some of my friends from the States. They gave me the directions, and thankfully, I only had another 15 minute walk ahead of me.

So many people, in such a short time frame, have been so helpful and kind. This is such a different experience from my last time here. I feel like I'm being cheesy about everything being so positive. I'm used to feeling so bitter and negative. In any case, I hope these acts of kindness continue. It really makes this transition so much easier.

Week One

After an entire day in transit, I landed at Incheon Airport at 5:30pm on Tuesday, the 28th. My trip was mostly painless, aside from having to wake up at 3:45am on Monday morning. My first flight to LA was fine, I fell asleep for about 30 minutes and listened to music the remaining time. I didn't really get to appreciate my layover time of two hours, as most of it was spent walking from the main terminal of LAX to the International Terminal.

At 10:55am, I boarded a Korean Air Airbus 380. Prior to my trip, I had google image searched for pictures of the A380, only to be presented with photos of plane crashes. I was a little anxious about flying on the Beluga whale vessel, but I was pleasantly surprise. Despite the two Korean men with bad breath and poor manners, my flight was incredibly smooth. Thankfully, I slept for nearly half of the flight, only waking occasionally to use the bathroom, eat meals, and watch the first 30 minutes of several movies (I took a lot of dramamine). I don't particularly like being on a plane for 13 hours, but hopefully my next flight of such distance will be on another 380.

Upon my arrival, I came to realize that my school wasn't the least bit prepared for my arrival or quick to remedy this particular problem. There were a lot of phone calls back and forth via pay phone, before I was able to board a bus to Seoul. Being that I didn't have a working cell on me, or any other way to reach them, the stress was building up. I got off the bus, with all of my luggage, only to find myself standing for about 30 minutes on the bustling streets of the Kangnam district. I flagged a woman down, and asked her if she spoke English. She did, so I told her my dilemma, and she let me use her cell phone. The principal of my school told me that someone was on their way to greet me. I waited and waited. Finally, an admin staff member named Kris met me, and helped me haul all of my shit to my apartment.

Korean apartments are interesting. Sometimes they are amazingly nice, but very rarely do teachers get to actually enjoy a stunning space. I'm going to try to make the most of my little shoebox, but it will likely involve some very trying moments. I will post pictures once I grind through the cleaning process and put up some of my own decorations. For now, you'll have to settle for a written description. Basically, I live in a medium sized, square room. It's not nuts to butts, but it isn't gigantic. Behind some accordion doors is my "kitchen," which consists of a sink, a two burner, gas stove, and some cupboards. To the right is a refrigerator and my small closet. There is a massive, old school Daewoo TV on a shitty, mobile TV stand, and a desk that I'm hoping the school will just get rid of. On the wall near my only window is my twin size bed. The bathroom is behind a door and, by Korean standards, is quite large. In my opinion, it could be double the size and I would be content.

Now, when I first arrived, I was incredibly worried, upset, and unimpressed. I was actually looking at flights leaving the next day, because I was so concerned about what I got myself into. I'm glad that I can look back a few days and laugh at myself for being so irrational. Things have improved 100%. My only current complaint is still in regard to my apartment. The school itself is absolutely amazing, and I'm really looking forward to teaching again.

My first day at the school was a bit intimidating at first, but now I'm mostly at ease. My Korean co-teacher, Ms Jina, is absolutely lovely. She had spent a week or two decorating my classroom prior to my arrival, and it looks great. The students are going to love it. My principal, Ms Carrie, and Vice Principal, along with the rest of the Korean staff members are really interesting and welcoming. This is something I'm not really familiar with as my last school was full of negative admin staff, who would blame teachers every time they made a mistake. So, it's really nice to be surrounded by people that smile, and laugh when they make a mistake, and tell you that it's okay when you do the same.

So, not only am I impressed with the fact that most people at the school seem genuinely happy, but I am also really fascinated by everyone's background and interests. Though I haven't gotten to know many of the other foreign teachers, I can already tell that they are really good people. Everyone is laid back, with a great sense of humor, and a willingness to help each other out. I couldn't have asked for a better school.

I think I'm in for a really good year. My first day of teaching is on Monday, and I'm looking forward to meeting my little 5 year olds. The principal's son is in my class, which I felt a little intimidated by, but it will be fine. Here's to having another good week!

The Countdown Begins

I am beginning a new chapter in my life, familiar, but still new nonetheless. In a few short weeks, I will be packing two large pieces of luggage with a years worth of clothing, a couple good books, my favorite toiletries, some art supplies (though more will undoubtably be purchased), some food stuffs that are unavailable there, and a list of goals for the year. I will also be taking a jam packed camera bag containing my Nikon D80, lenses: 50mm f/1.8, 11-16mm f/2.8, and 18-135mm f/3.5, flash, 3 external hard drives, and my MacBook Pro. Where am I headed, you say? The answer is Seoul, South Korea. I will be teaching English and Art to preschool age students.

When I said familiar, I meant that this will be my second tour of Seoul, so to speak. I taught English to elementary and middle school age students, and art to preschool students, between Feb 2010 and March 2011. I will also be living in the same general area of Seoul, which is the Gangnam District. Aside from location, and subject matter, this experience will be quite different, and hopefully more positive. My work hours will be 9-5:30pm, which is something I haven't experienced in many years. This will allow much more free time in the evenings than my previous hours provided. My students will be much younger than I am familiar with, but with any luck this means that they will be easier to teach and to care for appropriately. My new school is providing single housing accommodations, which will be nice. I had a roommate last year, which was a lot of fun. I enjoy living by myself, however. The last difference is the wonderful pay increase. This will allow me to save money for another great, multi-continent trip, and/or for my future graduate studies.

Once again, I will be putting my goals of becoming a paid designer/illustrator/photographer on hold. Don't be misled by my last sentence. When I say on hold, it simply means that I will be decreasing the number of hours I spend editing my resume and pdf portfolio, emailing Portland creative studios and firms, weeding through creative jobs on craigslist, LinkedIn, AIGA Portland, coroflot, and visiting the 40+ bookmarked websites of potential places I would like to work. These available hours will be used for shooting and editing my photographs, working on new design and illustration projects (personal and freelance(!!!)), teaching myself After Effects, and updating my website, blogs - more to come, and various social media platform profiles (twitter, LinkedIn, and behance).

So, aside from reassigning my creative free time, I have a few other goals I would like to accomplish during my year abroad. The last time I was living in Seoul, I found it easy to avoid exercising, despite the fact that there was a perfect stream with running trails situation just two blocks from my old apartment. Rather than gorging on 5,000 won ($5) pizzas and delicious kimbap, I want to maintain a healthier diet and follow an exercise routine. I am going to begin taking Bikram yoga classes after work, three times per week. I am also going to run 3-5 miles twice a week. Also, I spent many nights watching episodes of Dexter, and new movies, until the middle of the night. This time around, I am hoping to read more often prior to going to sleep at an earlier time.

Some things I will miss dearly about Portland

+ happy hour at my favorite restaurant, The Observatory

+ friday night movies and beer/wine with my friend Nicole

+ my beautiful nieces and nephews

+ my wonderful mother, and my grumpy dad

+ recapping "shit girls say," quotes with my sister on the phone

+ ragging on hipsters, bitching about family members, and watching movies with my brother, Joel

+ attending Portland's CreativeMornings series with Debbie (though I will be watching the posted videos)

+ having the ability to waste hours and money at Target

+ my queen size bed

+ my epson printer, and 24" iMac

+ wandering through various neighborhoods

+ watching movies at second run, cheapy theaters

+ the beer!

+ the bearded men

+ walking the labyrinth at The Grotto

+ helping my mom cook dinner, and going grocery shopping with her